Star Trek: Deep Space 9 (S7), Voyager (S5)

Let’s just leave Voyager aside for right now. Plenty of time for that in the S6 and S7 post. Which I guarantee you will come across as more of a belligerent rant than anything. I’ll be focusing instead on something I have nice things to say about; the final season of the very wonderful Deep Space 9. (DS9)

DS9 is phenomenal when all is said and done. It’s a predecessor to all of the excellent television which we’ve been blessed with over the last decade. (Lost, Breaking Bad, etc…) It’s true! Not just because of the dark undertones which television has leaned towards lately, but in turns of style, character development, and attention to story. DS9 was ahead of it’s time, and should really be as appreciated as The Original Series (TOS) was after its production run had ended.

Bashir: Draw on his face?O’brien: Draw on his face!

DS9 cared about it’s characters, each of them, and took the time to detail each person in the ensemble. The series is very excellent at playing to each character’s and actor’s strengths. Often with the Star Trek series, this does not seem to be the case. It’s refreshing. More than the character development though, the main plotline of the dominion war was given the same attention and care. The story unfolds slowly, dramatically, and (for the most part) realistically. The “problem of the week” format Star Trek is known for is pushed to the side in favor of the fascinating tale it tells.

Though the final season is not all roses. I had enough of Vic Fontaine (James Darren) since he was introduced in season 6, and he comes back far too often for my taste. Also at the beginning I of the season I had reservations on them bringing in Ezri (Nicole de Boer) to replace our fallen hero from the season 6 finale. She just seemed far too similar to … (really doing my best to avoid spoilers here.) Though, she is fleshed out and becomes an interesting character to see develop during the season. I wish Quark and Jake were more utilized during the finale, but honestly, there’s so much going on there already. Some people have to be just be there also.

Ain’t no party like a Weyoun party ’cause a Weyoun party don’t stop.

Meanwhile many of the main characters have unexpected, sometimes happy, sometimes sad endings to their stories. Garak, easily my favorite on the show, if just as fantastic as he’s ever been. How Nog ends up from where he began in season one is jaw dropping. And you won’t be able to wipe that goofy smile off your face when you see how things turn out for Rom. It’s not all roses when it’s said and done though. DS9 does, in fact, end! The story wraps up, people say their good byes. Final showdowns occur, and hard choices are made. Which is certainly what this series deserves.

A loving end

In the end I highly recommend DS9 to anybody. Like I said previously, there is too much Star Trek, so perhaps if you find a condensed list of Dominion War specific episodes, go for that. You’ll skip some of the silliness that undoubtedly happens throughout the series, but you’ll also miss some excellent character development, and the many self-contained gems which happen along the way. And no, it’s not very important you watch this series and VOY at the same time, so yeah, that was wasted effort on my part.